Few questions regarding Business Physical Address and Registered Agent Address for an LLC

Question

(UNITED STATES) I'm forming a single member LLC and operating it from home. Somewhere on the net said that I should not use my personal home address as a business address because if something goes wrong and my company is sued, my house could be considered as a business property instead of a personal property so it was not protected by the law. Is this true?

• Can I rent a mailbox at UPS Store and use it as a physical business address?
• Can I use my home address as a registered agent address? If yes, would my house be considered as a business property? or registered address is just an address that gonna receive mails from the government state?
• Can I use UPS mailbox store for both business address and registered agent?
• What other options should I consider?

Thank you.

Answer 1

Can I rent a mailbox at UPS Store and use it as a physical business address?

Depending on the type of business, this may not be allowed. However, there's no blanket restriction, so you need to check if for business of the type that you have this is not forbidden. In any case, there's "business address" and there's "address of records". The former can, for most part, be a PO box. The latter usually cannot. Check if Virginia requires "address of records" to be provided.

Can I use my home address as a registered agent address? If yes, would my house be considered as a business property? or registered address is just an address that gonna receive mails from the government state?

Yes, you can be your LLCs registered agent. The registered agent must be able to accept official deliveries during the regular business hours. PO box cannot be used for that purpose, it must be a physical address where there's someone present to sign for you when you're served with lawsuits and notices. If you are not at home during the regular business hours - you cannot provide your home address for that purpose.

You will be using your home for business purposes, whether you're serving as your own registered agent or not. So depending on your county/city laws - it is likely that your home will be considered place of business either way.

Can I use UPS mailbox store for both business address and registered agent?

See above.

What other options should I consider?

You can hire a register agent in your State, it is usually $50-$100/year. They will scan whatever they receive and forward to you, usually within hours. Some also provide mail forwarding service (i.e.: they'll forward any mail for you, not only official correspondence), but that usually costs extra.

Answer 2

Yes, you can use a post office box as a business address but not as an address for your registered agent. Using your home address as the address of the business does not, to my knowledge, create a legal issue if you are sued. Your home is a personal asset, not one that belongs to the LLC, so it would not be subject to seizure or forfeiture as part of any lawsuit against the business itself.

Every state requires an LLC or corporation to have a "registered agent" which, according to Wikipedia is:

In United States business law, a registered agent, also known as a resident agent or statutory agent, is a business or individual designated to receive service of process (SOP) when a business entity is a party in a legal action such as a lawsuit or summons.

You can be your own registered agent if you like. Companies that provide incorporation services will usually offer to act as a registered agent for your new business for a fee, but it's really no big deal.

I would recommend that you go to the NoLo.com web site section about forming an LLC and take a look at their resources to help you through this. You need to do it right, so understand what you need to do for the state you live in, and take your time. If you rush it and screw it up then you might regret it later.

I hope this helps

Good luck!